Wednesday Cheese Curds: Packers 2026 UDFAs preparing to take their shot
A small but strong UDFA class is ready to get to work in Green Bay.
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 4: Nyjalik Kelly #9 of the UCF Knights looks down the field against the Kansas Jayhawks during the the second half at FBC Mortgage Stadium on October 4, 2025 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Eston Parker/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images) | ISI Photos via Getty Images It doesn’t make any difference to me whether or not an undrafted free agent makes the Packers roster, and it probably shouldn’t to you. The Packers 21-year streak is as much a coincidence as it is an organizational philosophy or an indication that they’re doing anything that any other team isn’t trying to do.
But I do get the appeal for rooting for undrafted guys. These are players that every team, including the Packers, passed over multiple times. They have a chance to prove everyone, including the Packers, wrong in pretty spectacular fashion.
That’s about as good as it gets as far as sports drama at this time of year! What are the chances any of them make an actual impact? Pretty low, if we’re being honest.
As imprecise as the NFL’s talent identification mechanism is, it’s thorough, and it does a pretty good job of filtering out the players that can make an impact at the NFL level and the ones that can’t. Sure there are misses, but they are few and far between. If there were more, I don’t think we’d see alternative mechanisms like the NFL Supplemental Draft dying on the vine.